


On ghosts

by Kestrad



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Character Study, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-10-19
Updated: 2011-10-19
Packaged: 2017-10-24 18:41:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/266636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kestrad/pseuds/Kestrad
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ghosts, if they do exist, can be killed. Bound, trapped, exorcised, dispelled.</p><p>There is no way to kill shame.</p>
            </blockquote>





	On ghosts

America doesn’t like ghosts.

Not the physical kind, the pale flittering creations of tales made to scare children at bedtime. Those, if they do exist, can be killed. Bound, trapped, exorcised, dispelled.

There is no way to kill shame.

America tosses and turns in the darkness, closing his eyes so he doesn’t have to see Vietnam lying in a pool of blood, Korea crouching with murder in his eyes. Too many countries to count glaring at him with righteous fury. It doesn’t help; he sees them anyway. Agent orange and napalm and bullets, conspiracy and shadows and death. Because you’re the hero, the smallest, darkest corner of his soul mocks. And the ends justify the means.

If someone sees him trembling, asks why he’s afraid, he’ll say it’s because of ghosts.

That’s not true, not quite. It’s not the ghosts he fears.

It’s himself.

**Author's Note:**

> Written for one of the HetaChallenge monthly prompts (October 2011), in which the prompt was "haunted" and the words to include were orange, darkness, fear, and ghost.


End file.
